Improvement in machines for shaping lozenges



2 Sheets--Sheet1.

Patented July 14, 1874.

T. ROBERTSON. Machines for Shaping Lozenges. No. 153,018.

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w/a zpzw l M 2 Sheets--Sheet2.

T. ROBERTSON. Machines for Shaping Lozenges. No.l53,018.PatentedJuly14,I874.

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UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

THOMAS ROBERTSON, OF TORONTO, CANADA.

IMPROVEMENT IN MACHINES FOR SHAPING LOZENG ES.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 153,018, dated July 14,1874; application filed March 16, 1874.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, THOMAS RoBERTsoN, of the city of Toronto, in thecounty of York and in the Province of Ontario, Canada, have invented aProcess and Machine for Shaping Lozenges, of which the following is aspecification:

My invention relates to the manufacture of that class of confectioneryknown as lozenges;

and it consists principally in subjecting the eating one is to'snap itin two pieces, and after sucking it a short time break the pieces up andswallow them before they dissolve in the mouth. By giving the faces ofthe lozenges an oval or rounding shape, or even by chamfering the sharpedges, the lozenges fit the mouth much better, and there is no desire onthe part of the person eating them to break them, the lozenge beinggradually and satisfactorily reduced by the action of the saliva andswallowed in solution.

The great objection to comfits prepared in the pan by the accumulationof sirup around a nucleus is not only that the majority of the comfit iscomposed of sirup and the flavoring of the nucleus lost, but the wholelabor of manufacture is necessary by skillful hands, for the reason thatthe germs of the eomfit are very apt to stick to each other, great carebeing necessary to keep them separate and cause the comiits to growuniformly and regularly of a desired shape.

With my machine the lozenge-nucleus or comfit-germ can be so shapedbefore it is put in the pan that only a thin coating of the sirup isrequired to give it the finish and market value of the comfit preparedin the old way, with the additional advantages of superior flavor andless cost to the manufacturer.

In the accompanying drawings, Figures 1 and 2 are cross-sections of mylozenge-shaping machine on the line a I). Fig. 3 is a longitudinalsection; Fig. at plan of my machine. Fig. 5 is a detail of the apparatusfor feeding the lozenges to the revolving cutters and holding them whilethey are being operated upon by the cutters. Fig. 6 is a detail of therevolving cutters.

A is the frame of the machine, which, in the drawings, is shown in wood,but which may be of iron or other suitable material. B is the shaft fromwhich the cutter-shafts O G are driven in opposite directionsby belt, asshown, and which is connected by belt or gearing, with the running-shaftof shop. D is the shaft, driven in any suitable way, on which arefastened the cam-wheels E, which operate and regulate the feed oflozenges to the revolving cutters O by means of the leversF and Iworking from the eccentric channels 0 e sunk in the sides of E. On theperiphery of E is a raised cam-guide, e which,when the wheel E revolves,actuates the hin ge-lever G, causing it, by the peculiar motioncommunicatedto it, to free the lozenges from the jaws which hold them,while the revolving cutters act on their sides. On D is also fastenedthe geared wheel D driving the wheel D which has cut in the periphery ofits hub the inflected channel (7,

into which fit, on opposite sides, one end of the sliding rods H. Theaction of the channel (I when the wheel D revolves gives to the rods HAa sliding horizontal motion backward and forward, the distance traveledbeing regulated by the inflection of the channel (I. To these rods areattached alternately, in any convenient way, the slidingframes I, towhich are fastened and running in suitable bearings the revolvingcutter-sl'iafts O O. The channel (Z is cut in such a way that theinflection, on opposite sides of the hub, although exactly equal from acenter, diverges in precisely an opposite direction the object of thisis to cause the revolving cutters O fastened to the shaft 0 O, toapproach and reeede from each other during each revolution of the wheelD The cutter-heads fit into the socketsc c on the shaft 0 O. In thedetailof these cutter-heads, shown in Fig. 6, it will be seen that theknives J are detachable, being held in their place by the clamps j. Thisis done for the purpose of using knives of different shapes in the samecutterheads, and that the knives may be easily dotached when broken orin want of sharpening. The cutter-heads (3 containing-the knives canalso be so adjusted that by moving and clamping them in the sockets c 0they will reduce lozenges to different thicknesses.

The feed-levers F 1?", shown in detail in Fi g. 5, receive the singlelozenge as it drops from the feed-tube K, F having a lower lip, f, onwhich the lozenge stands, the rear edge of the lozenge fitting into theconcave feather end of the lever 1*, and being held upright by thespring-guards j, which close upon the lozenge, and press it tightlyagainst the side of F as the levers are impelled forward between therevolving cutters O. A pin,f engages the end. of the spring-guard fcausing it to spread, and when the said guard f is moved forward, thepin being removed from. contact with it, it springs in, closing upon thelozenge. On the frame of the machine, ilnmediately in the center betweenthe cutters U, and exactly opposite to the feather end of F placed asen'iicircular lozenge-holder, F in shape and thickness similar to theend of the lever F. The lozenge is caught on edge, as the machine1(3"0l\0S, by the end of the lever F and is received by and pressedtightly against the holder 1?. The action of the eccentric channels 0sunk in E now removes the lever F, which is carried back to its originalposition, leaving the lozenge clear and ready for the action of therevolving cutters, which come forward at once and act upon its edges andsides, as desired, reducing it to the required shape and thickness. Theremaining lever F now quickly retires, allowing the lozenge to drop intothe tube L, which iarrics it off. The'levcr F is provided with jaws atthe pointupon which it hinges, between which is placed a spring, for thepurpose of regulating the pressure on the edges of the lozenge. Toprevent the lozenge sticking in the holder 11 or the end of F the lever(r is placed on the machine and actuated, as before described, andremoves the' lozenge with certainty the moment the lever F and cutterbegin to recedc from the center.

It will be seen from an inspection of the sections that during the timethe above operation has been going onthe mouth of the feedtube K isclosed by the lever F allowing but one lozenge at a time to be carriedforward, The lower part of the fecd-tube K is fastened to the machine atan angle, and curved downward at the mouth, as shown, and the passageout within it is of such a shape that the lozenges stand on edge, androll down an inclined plane to the mouth. To the upper part of thefeed-tube are fitted detachable tubes K, which have asimilar passage outwithin, and which are filled with lozenges from a table, the objectbeing to have a continuous feed by replacing a tube when empty with afull one before all the lozenges have passed out of the feed-tube K, thehole 70 being cut in the side for inspection.

I do not confine myself to one set of revolving cutters, as many setscould be worked in one machine, and from the line-shafting, as desired,each being a repetition of the last.

The advantages of my invention are that lozenges can be reduced andshaped to any size or form required after they are cut and hardenedsufliciently in the usual way. The novel appearance and finish of goodsmade in this way must be a great advantage to the manufacture.

I claim as my invention- 1. The process herein substantially describedof shaping the faces of lozenges by the action of the revolving cuttersG, as and for the purpose specified.

2. The combination of the two oppositelyrcvolving andhorizontally-reciprocating cutter-shafts O (J, having the cutter-headsO, with the lozenge -liolder F and lever F substantially as and for thepurposes set forth.

3. The revolving shaft 1) and wheels E, with eccentric channels 0 and 0in combination with the levers F F, arranged and operating substantiallyas described.

at. The revolving shaft D and wheel E, with cam 0 in combination withthe lever Gr, arranged and operating substantially as described.

5. The revolving shaft D and wheel 1), and wheel D on its shaft, havingthe inflected channel (I cut in its hub, in combination with thehorizontall y-slidin g rods II and frames 1, the said rods and frameshaving imparted to them, by the rotation of said wheel D, a directreciprocating movement, substantially as and for the purposes specified.

6. The levers F and F, with springguard f, in combination with thelozenge-holder F arrangedand operating substantially as and for thepurpose specified.

7. The levers 1 F, with the s 'iring-gnard f, in combination with thefeed-tube K, arranged substantially as and for the purpose specified.

S. The combination of the feed-tubes K with the detachable tubes K,substantially as herein shown and described.

9. The lever F and holder F in combination with the revolving cutters 0,arranged and operating substai'itially as described, and for the purposespecified.

10. The spring-guard f, in combination with the pin 1', arrangedsubstantially as and for the purpose set forth.

THOMAS ROBERTSON.

Witnesses:

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